On Sundays, the accounting business next door was closed, and the street was blessedly deserted. The only sound was Lilah’s phone ringing down the hall.
Jez gave me a knowing wink and headed to her office, while I turned into the kitchen to make some coffee. I considered going after her to talk about Shaz but decided it could wait. I had an appointment in twenty minutes, so it had to wait.
The coffee began to brew, and I breathed in the wonderful aroma. There is no scent quite like that of fresh coffee.
Jez’s voice carried to me faintly down the hall as she made a phone call. Minutes later, she turned up the steady beat of a heavy metal song. My head ached slightly from my brief crying stint, and I looked to the coffee pot for the solution to my problems. I poured a cup full of steaming coffee, and too lazy to add cream and sugar, padded down to Veryl’s office.
The door was slightly ajar in open invitation. I poked my head in. He would have sensed my approach anyway. He sat behind his old, elaborately designed desk, my favorite piece of décor. Despite the phone pressed to his ear, he inclined his head toward the seat across from him.
Veryl was the type of man that nearly all women find attractive. His short chocolate brown hair was streaked with the barest trace of silver, which only added to his distinguished presence. His clear blue eyes beamed at me as he informed the person on the phone that he had to attend to business.
I knew that I had his undivided attention when his gaze swept over me slowly, agonizingly so. I was dying to spit my questions at him but felt obligated to make small talk first.
“You’re in early tonight.” He commented. His rich voice was deep and melodic. “Expecting somebody?”
I nodded, as I looked at the paintings behind his desk. “Yeah. I figured I’d take it easy tonight after the last few assignments I’ve had. Been a little on the rough side.”
“I think you enjoy it, though.” Veryl’s slightly hawk-like nose was angular and intimidating when paired with the studious expression he now wore. “Standing so close to the flame can be hypnotizing in its draw. It can also kill you. Be careful with that outlook, Alexa. It has destroyed many that I have worked with in the past.”
“I know. I blame my personal life for that,” I offered lamely. When I didn’t say more he knew better than to prompt. Veryl is absolutely the most professional person that I know.
“So what is it that brings you to my office?” He shuffled through the papers on his desk and produced a copy of the day’s paper. He handed it to me.
The headline screamed that police may be after a serial killer after the murders of two women in the past week. I skimmed the article. They referenced Raoul as a suspect, but the write up seemed to be based more on hearsay that factual truths.
“Not this,” I said as I handed the paper back to him. “Raoul didn’t do it. I’ve seen him a few times this past week. I know for a fact he could never have killed Julie Price.”
Veryl shifted languidly in his chair, stretched his arms out, and cracked his fingers with a sound that chilled my bones. “I don’t have to tell you what’s going to happen if he is somehow behind this or if he ends up being convicted.”
No, he didn’t have to tell me. I knew that Raoul would be put on the extermination list, treated like the vampires raping young girls of both their blood and innocence or the Weres that just didn’t know how to pass up fresh meat. A conviction would put Raoul behind bars where he couldn’t hide his true nature.
“Someone’s setting him up, Veryl. I can only ask that you let me keep an eye on this situation for now.” I met his eyes, seeking the wisdom within. “At least until I can figure out who is behind it, and why.”
“I can’t make you any promises, my dear, but as of right now, it’s in your hands.”
Great. That was just what I needed to hear and more than a little irritating, since it had nothing to do with my questions.
“Ok, the real reason I’m here: I’m trying to find information on the werewolf who killed my family.”
The blank look that passed over his sharp features was not quick enough to disguise the moment of recognition in his eyes. He knew something.
“Alexa, it’s been years. Can’t you just allow sleeping dogs to lie?”
“If you’re trying to tell me that the bastard is still alive then no, I will not. I keep having the nightmare, Veryl, and if you know who it is, anything at all, I need to know.”
Fingers poised into a steeple, he smiled softly as one might smile at a child who refuses to give up. “I cannot say whether I know of this wolf’s existence or not, but, I can advise you to forget about it. I completely understand what it means to live out your life with doors that remain open and questions that are unanswered. But, trust me, this is better left that way.”